October 4, 2024 Stories from the Backside

October 4, 2024  Stories from the Backside

While digging through stacks of old—very old—win pictures, a massive, nearly white Quarter Horse gelding kept popping up. Anybody who followed Northern California Quarter Horse racing in the mid-seventies would remember the hoofed freight train named Head Pin.

Head Pin was instantly recognizable. Raw-boned and on the hammer-headed side, by industry standards, he wasn’t the most beautiful horse to step into a starting gate. But when that gate opened, and Head Pin boiled out of there, he was breathtaking in all his shimmering white glory.

I have a stack of Head Pin win pictures with Jim Riley (my late husband) aboard. Head Pin dominated at distances of 350 yards, 400 yards, 440 yards and set a new track record at 870 yards.

Now, to the story. While I have many stories starring Head Pin, one stands out. Head Pin was owned by Everett Boothe and trained by Ron Hawkins. Ron and his wife Rexanne—good people, full stop. I’ll go into how special they were in another episode. However, this story is about Head Pin and the night he ran in a named race, going 440 yards at Los Alamitos.

Following several easy victories in 1978, it was decided to send

Head Pin to Los Alamitos to try on arguably stronger competition. Separating the winning combination of Ron and Head Pin was hard, but it had to be done.

Though there was a deeply talented pool of jockeys to choose from at Los Alamitos, it was never in question that Jim would be flown down to ride Head Pin. The massive white ghost was a bully, plain and simple. He intimidated riders, pony people, and starters; it was just who he was. Head Pin could pout. He could get mad. Head Pin could buck; he’d done it backtracking; he’d even bucked once during the race, and still, he won. But he didn’t intimidate Jim. Over the years, they’d earned a hard-won respect for each other.

Everett hired a pilot and his six-passenger twin-prop Cessna to take Everett, Ron, Rexanne, me, and Jim down to Los Al on race day. I don’t recall where we landed other than it was a tiny airport with a two-story control tower. The pilot parked the plane himself, and we piled off and headed for a chain-link gate next to the tower, where a limo waited.

We were excited and anxious. This race would be more challenging than previous races, and we knew from experience how our boy, Head Pin, could be. If he decided to pout, buck, or do any of the other things he was known for and got himself left when the gate opened, he wouldn’t be able to come from behind against this type of competition.

I don’t recall what the odds were on Head Pin, but we were all betting at the fifty-dollar window with both hands.

When “they’re all in” was announced, our group stood breathless, eyes glued to post five. The big white horse looked too large for the enclosure, and then they were off. You only need to look at the winning photo to see how easily he won and how he pricked his ears to understand the celebration started for us when the gate opened. Because when Head Pin left the gate in front, you could start counting your winnings. And did we ever.

Crowded around the fifty-dollar window, confusion reigned supreme—we may have started the celebration at the bar before we headed to the window with our winning tickets. Who bet what, and how much? What was the exacta going to pay? Pulling tickets from various pockets. Finding another pocket with more tickets until the cashier finally commented. “For people who don’t know what they’re doing, you sure know how to make money.”

While our celebration may have been enthusiastic, it stood us in good stead when we arrived back at the airport and found the gates locked. Undeterred, we used a garbage can, placed a jacket over the razor wire, and scaled the fence below the control tower. Remember, it was 1978. Can you imagine if we had tried something like that today?

Here are a couple of other pictures of Head Pin winning. I don’t recall how he ended his career; it was long ago. However, I’ll never forget the wonder that was Head Pin

Thank you for taking the time to visit my website. I hope you enjoyed one of my memories of Head Pin. Feel free to ask if you have a question about the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred horseracing or might be interested in any aspect of writing. Or . . . do you have a good story that you would like to share? I won’t sell or use your contact information.